The Tales of Phoenix & Shark
by childofsquidward
Summary: The Bamon Miraculous Ladybug AU that literally no one asked for.


**A/N: Wrote this for the Bamon March Challenge! I know the theme was iconic movie duos, and I did originally go with Ben and Mal from Descendants, but I ended going with Adrien and Marinette from Miraculous Ladybug instead, so I hope everyone likes it! Also, there are definitely things that I changed to not make this story an exact retelling of ML, just a fyi. Also, warning, I swear a lot in this fic for some reason, I don't know why. Happy reading!**

* * *

"Shark, I told you to go left, not right!" Phoenix shouted at her partner, the idiot in the black leather.

"I needed to go right to have a better angle," the raven-haired man simply shrugs, jumping from the building that they were standing onto the top of the town's clock tower. "And besides, it all worked out in the end Judgy."

"Yeah," Phoenix follows him, jumping on the clock tower as well, "thanks to _my_ miraculous!"

"I bought you time so you could do what you do best - save the day."

Noting the slight bitterness in Shark's voice, Phoenix makes a point to remind him, "You mean what _we_ do best."

Shark lets out a snort, causing Phoenix to protest, "It's true! You and me, we've been a team since the very beginning! It's been what, a year, maybe two since we started working together?"

"Try three."

"Fine, three. Point is, I couldn't manage to do half the stuff that we do without your help."

"Stop trying to make me feel better, Phoenix, it's not going to do any good. Call me when the town's in danger again." And with that, Shark is gone, leaping home from building to building.

"Feathers fall," Phoenix calls out softly, her spandex red and purple bodysuit evaporating and being replaced with her daily uniform of boots, leggings and a ginormous sweater. Her ponytail falls, her curly brown hair flowing a few inches down past her shoulders.

She pulls a knee up to her chest, hand resting on her knee, and chin resting dejectedly on her hand. "I don't what I'm going to do about that stupid fish, Ina," she sighs.

A minuscule, adorable red blob-like creature floats up towards her, using her tiny body in order to comfort her miraculous holder. "Don't worry Bonnie, I know you'll get through to him."

"That's just it, Ina, I don't even know what's wrong with him. He's not being himself."

"Maybe he won't listen to the superhero side of you, but he might listen to the civilian side," Ina suggests.

"Are you sure?" Bonnie looks at her kwami nervously.

"Positive! Knowing him, he'll probably swing by your house this week. All you need to do is wait it out."

"I hope you're right. Now let's get you some food, you're probably starved, not to mention tired!"

"Mmm, I was just thinking about your Gram's apple pie..."

"With ice-cream?" Bonnie says teasingly, knowing how big Ina's sweet tooth is.

"Let's go!" Ina yells at the top of her lungs, as she and Bonnie head home.

Meanwhile, Shark sits atop the roof of the Salvatore Boarding House, looking up at the sky. "Jaws shut," he sighs, his black leather costume being replaced with his jeans and blue plaid shirt.

"What's wrong Damon?" his kwami, Fisk, asks him. The tiny black creature isn't exactly known for his compassion, but he cares about his miraculous holders regardless, Damon in particular.

"Nothing."

"So, something?" Fisk lightly nudges Damon's head.

"Fisk -"

"Can it. Tell me what's bothering you," Fisk all but commands, since compassion clearly didn't seem to work.

Damon sighs. "It's my mom's birthday, and my dad, as usual, is nowhere to be found."

Fisk's eyes widen in realization, having completely forgotten what day it was. "I'm sorry. You really miss her, don't you kid?"

"More than you can ever imagine. Kind of makes me feel forgotten, you know? One parent gone and the other desperate to join her. That's why I lashed out at Phoenix earlier - I didn't mean to, I swear - it's just that at times like this when I feel this way, forgotten and unnecessary, it's really hard to be okay with being Phoenix's sidekick - yes, I know that's not how Phoenix sees me, not the point, Fisk - rather than being Phoenix and Shark like we're supposed to be and like Phoenix goes out of her way to show me that we are which makes it a hundred times worse because I can't even hate her!"

"Because you love her!" For someone who is literally four inches, Fisk could really shatter an eardrum or two.

"Yeah, Fisk, I love her," Damon admits unwillingly, "but maybe not in the same way that I used to. Besides, this isn't about Phoenix, this is about my mother, and the fact that my father doesn't have it in him to spend a second of his time to comfort his two grieving sons."

"Damon, notice how you two grieving sons?" Damon nods, unsure as to where Fisk was heading with this. "Well your dad may not be here, but your little brother is, and I'm sure he misses your mom just as much as you do. Maybe he's feeling even worse than you are because his big brother isn't around," Fisk points out, sure that just the very thought of Stefan might cheer him up.

Damon groans, actually wanting to kick himself. "God, you're right! What kind of an older brother would leave his fifteen-year-old baby bro all alone to deal with the fact that it's his dead mother's birthday?!"

"When am I not?" is all Fisk says, feeling smug due to Damon's kind words which were clearly aimed at him.

"Shut up Fisk," he drawls, a smile playing on his lips regardless as he opens the door to the attic and heads inside.

Luckily finding what he was looking for, Damon heads downstairs, calling out, "Hey, Stefan, I found your favorite movie!"

The younger Salvatore brother puts all speedsters to shame as he rushes to his brother's room since it has the flatscreen.

Fisk smiles as he watches the two brothers sit down to watch their mother's movie, laughing and crying all at the same time, eyes shining with tears of bittersweet joy. From the corner of his eye, he sees Giuseppe Salvatore looking at his sons fondly from the doorway of Damon's room, trying his best to keep his eyes off the screen where his dead wife was very much alive. Fisk simply shakes his little head and snuggles into his usual spot inside of Damon's shirt pocket, wondering if this family would ever truly become whole again.

* * *

Being Phoenix brought a lot of challenges to Bonnie's doorstep, some not even life-threatening, like the lack of sleep she experienced every morning, such as this one.

Attempting to balance her books and her coffee in one hand as she picked up her phone with the other was nothing short of a struggle.

Until a warm pair of hands grabbed her things out of her hand, leaving her with only her phone. Bonnie looks up and sees none other Damon Salvatore, charming heroic smile etched on his face and all. Damon tilts his head slightly, gesturing towards Bonnie's phone, shaking her out of her thoughts so that she could get back to her phone call.

"Yes, hi Dahlia, I'm so sorry about that. I'll get that file to you the minute I get to work. Alright, thank you, see in a few hours. Bye!"

Zipping up her phone within the confines of her blazer pocket, not in the one Ina resided, of course, Bonnie turns her attention to Damon, thanking him for his help, with every intention of relieving him of carrying her stuff.

Except Damon insisted that he carry them.

"What kind of a gentleman would I be if I didn't offer to carry your books for you?"

"And they say chivalry is dead. At least let me have my coffee."

"Oh, right!" a flustered Damon fumbles as he hands over his friend's coffee, emitting a light chuckle from Bonnie.

As Bonnie takes a sip of the coffee, Damon's eyes widen in realization.

That wasn't her coffee.

"Bonnie -"

"This isn't mine," Bonnie says with a frown, "it's too sweet."

Damon simply stares at her incredulously as she switches their cups back. "It's a black coffee with less than a pack of sugar, and maybe a dash of milk."

"Well, I actually don't put _anything_ in my coffee. I just drink it black."

"And people say I'm bad! What, no sleep again?"

Bonnie scoffs. "Damon, I haven't slept since junior year of high school three years ago."

"Same," he says, chuckling, but then he furrows his eyebrows in concern and adds, "But seriously, are you okay? Do you want me to speak with my father? If he's giving you too much work, I'm sure we can try to rectify that. Maybe I can help you out, lighten the load a little -"

"Don't you dare, Damon Giuseppe Salvatore!" Bonnie warns him - if she could set him on fire for even suggesting such a thing, she would. "Between school and heeding to your father's each and every whim, you've spread yourself so thin that if you take on one more thing, you'll break. You spend your lunch break sleeping for crying out loud!"

"I could say the same about you, Bon Bon," Damon retorts. "You go to school, you go to work for my dad which in itself is a full-time job, I don't know why you're kidding yourself with this internship bullshit, you help out at your Gram's shop, you babysit Professor Parker's terror twins, you work with student learning support at the university, basically occupying every single position and on top of that, you are always ready and willing to help that crazy best-friend of yours with whatever scheme she has cooked up."

"Touché. And might I remind you that my crazy best-friend might just be married to yours one day? Just putting that out there. Plus, Sarah's your cousin!" Bonnie lightly smacks him on the arm during that last part.

Damon remains unfazed. "Tyler's basically your brother, next please."

"You are being unusually infuriating today," Bonnie says pointedly. "God, it's like talking to Shark."

"Shark?" Damon says questioningly, raising a curious eyebrow.

"Yes, Shark," Bonnie begins nervously, "you know, Phoenix and Shark, defenders of Mystic Falls."

Damon crosses his arms over his chest, waiting for Bonnie to continue.

"We're… friends," she finally decides to say. "We talk, he sleeps on my roof, sometimes on my porch so that the neighborhood kids don't think that he's a bird or a cat burglar from afar and pelt him with rocks and sticks. Who even decided that all black leather was a good idea?"

Damon laughs wholeheartedly, causing Bonnie to let out a sigh of relief. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices a familiar blue Camaro, causing her to ask, "Why is your Uncle Zach following us?"

"Because he's still my bodyguard," Damon admits unwillingly.

Bonnie sends him a sympathetic glance. "Your dad wouldn't budge, huh?"

Damon simply blinks at her as if to say 'are you freaking kidding me?'

"What do you think?"

"Well, at least he doesn't have Dahlia tracking your every single move and dictating your life choices anymore?" Bonnie decides to awkwardly point out helpfully as she tends to do.

"Because Dahlia is awesome and drew a line at continuing to make every decision for me the minute I turned eighteen."

"Dahlia actually managed to talk some sense into your father? What am I saying, of course she did!"

"I have never seen my father be possessed by the spirit of Ares while having the fear of God be engraved into his very soul - it was glorious. Also, two for one, because when Stefan turns eighteen in the next three years, the same thing happens to him."

Bonnie laughs at Damon's words. "Nice! But wait, if Zach's with you, then who the hell is Stefan's new bodyguard?"

Damon's eyes darken slightly as he grumbles, "Kai Parker."

Bonnie's eyes light up when she hears her friend's name. "Wait, Nora's older brother Kai, really?"

"Yup. What a joy. Stefan's miserable."

"That's impossible - Kai's a blast, and Stefan adores him."

"Well, in my mind he's miserable. Anyways, forget that, what are you doing before class? We have time, and I feel like I don't see you at all." Damon looks at her hopefully, as if trying to tell her that he misses her like crazy 24/7... without actually his using words, as he usually does.

"If Sarah were here, she would tell you to get in line… after my Grams. But, I uh, I promised Jeremy that I'd look at some of his sketches, and I have some new stuff I want to run by him as well." Bonnie glances at Damon guiltily, feeling even worse when she's the disheartened look on his face.

"Plus, we have that midterm for our Communication and Social Media class coming up," Bonnie continues, hoping that makes things better, "and Jeremy's the best study buddy to have ever existed - please don't tell Sarah I said that, and I'll hand over Gram's sugar cookie recipe because I have seen you inhale those."

"First of all, I would die for Miss Sheila's sugar cookies," Damon reminds her, "please tell her that, she doesn't let me taste test anymore, or give me free samples!"

Bonnie smiles fondly despite the exasperation in her voice. "You are really cheap for a billionaire."

"I know, it drives Rebekah and Katherine insane, they have spent many hours chewing me out and talking my ear off about it."

"As opposed to what they usually do," Bonnie drawls.

"Funny." Damon playfully shoves her, making her shove him back. "As I was saying, you should've just led with the fact that you're meeting up to study, no need for all the other stuff."

If Fisk and Ina could exchange similar glances of 'fuck this is going to be a disaster,' they would.

Bonnie, utterly confused, tries to wrap her around what Damon just said. "Wait, hold on, what's that supposed to mean?"

Damon merely shrugs. "Just that Jeremy wouldn't be able to pass half his classes without your help, and if he was really your friend, he wouldn't add one more thing to your to-do list."

Bonnie rolls her eyes, slightly pissed, not wanting to believe that they're really doing this same song and dance again. "Jeremy's smart, and we are meeting up to study _together_ , otherwise I would've said that I was tutoring him. God, ever since senior year, you've had such a problem with him, Kai too, and don't even get me started on Enzo."

"Maybe because they've all been demonized into Phoenix and Shark's villains of the week at some point, and, oh yeah, _they've all kidnapped you_!"

Bonnie stares at Damon in disbelief, giving him a judgy glare that Damon found was eerily similar to that of Phoenix. "Your uncle Zach did the exact same thing when he was demonized, as did Katherine, so quit holding that over their heads unless you plan to do the same to your uncle and your best-friend, you hypocritical ass."

"Alright, fine! You have fun with Jeremy, and Kai, and Enzo, and _Shark_ , while I head to class," Damon tells her before shoving her books to her chest and walking off in a huff, angrily tossing his coffee cup in the trash.

Bonnie wants nothing more than to catch up to him so that she could strangle him, but instead chooses to throw away her own coffee cup and head to the library to meet up with Jeremy.

Honestly, since when did she start preferring Shark's company to Damon's?!

* * *

Intermediate French I was the one class that Damon had with all his friends. They had all made a collective decision to take the class together so that everyone could not only have the chance, but also an excuse to be together.

Now, Damon had spent a summer or two in Paris, so his French wasn't as rusty as friends', but he was more than happy to just say that a lower level would be good review, and would improve his french even further, while in reality, he just wanted to a have a class with all his friends again.

Except today, there was one friend that he certainly wasn't looking forward to seeing.

"Alright sunshine, what gives?" his best-friend's voice is what brings him out of his thoughts.

"What are you talking about Ty?" Damon asks, trying to seem confused, as if he had no idea what Tyler was talking about, but Tyler Lockwood wasn't his best-friend for nothing.

"I'm talking about how Damon 'the sunshine child' Salvatore is brooding to the point where I almost thought that I had his father sitting beside me."

"Don't be an ass."

"He's not wrong," his other best-friend, Rebekah Mikaelson, pipes up from where she sat on his other side, filing her nails.

"Yeah, you're being unusually grumpy, and I literally don't think that I've ever seen you frown once throughout the entirety of our friendship," adds one Katherine Pierce, resting her chin on Rebekah's head from behind her, casually wrapping her arms around her neck as Rebekah barely bats an eyelash.

"What's wrong, Damon?" Tyler asks, worried. He knows that yesterday was his mom's birthday, but he talked to his friend just last night before they fell asleep, and he sounded perfectly content - Tyler would be able to tell if he was faking it.

"I'll tell you what's wrong," they all turn their attention towards the entrance of the classroom when they hear Sarah Salvatore's familiar growl of anger, "he did something to upset Bonnie, and now either he's pissed at himself, or he's pissed at her because for some reason, picking a fight with her amuses him to no end, I mean, what other logical explanation could there be?"

"That she's wrong!" Damon lets out an outraged scream.

"Oh no, nine out of ten times when the two of you have had a fight, Bonnie's been right, and you've been wrong," Sarah oh so helpfully reminds her cousin, marching over to his desk in a huff. She then turns towards their friend Josh and asks, "Josh, tell him I'm right."

"She's right," says Josh, his eyes glued to his computer screen. "I should know, I've been keeping track."

"Yeah, well this is the one time she's wrong," Damon protests, crossing his arms over his chest in a huff.

"You are a five-year-old," Sarah deadpans.

" _Bonnie_ is the five-year-old!"

"You're both five-year-olds," Tyler groans as Sarah kisses him on the side of head muttering, "Thanks babe."

"Ignoring the love vomit in the corner," Rebekah speaks up, "what exactly are you two fighting about anyway? I thought that I was only one who could ever piss her off."

"Well, Jeremy -" Damon begins to say, only to be interrupted as all his friends groaned in unison. "What?!"

"Damon, sweetie, I say this in the most loving way possible," Bonnie's cousin Emily tells him, "please just shove your obliviousness to your jealousy up your ass, grow a pair and finally admit that you have feelings for Bonnie!"

"Yeah, ask her out already! I mean, _come on_ , we've all been waiting over three years for this," their friend Lexi pipes up from the back, tossing around her soccer ball. "This coming from the girl who thinks relationships are bullshit."

"Wow, thanks babe," her girlfriend Nora drawls. "But seriously Damon, get your shit together."

"Okay, stop! Bonnie's not even my type," Damon blurts out, immediately regretting it as he gets stationary and writing utensils - soccer ball, courtesy of Lexi and nail file courtesy of Rebekah - thrown at him from all directions as he lets the sentence slip.

"How is Bonnie Bennett not your type?" demands Rebekah, as Katherine smacks him upside the head. "She's everyone's type! Hell, even _Tyler_ had a crush on her at one point."

"Bex, you hate Bonnie, as you like to constantly remind us all every other second," Damon reminds her.

"Well, _hate_ is a very strong word -" Katherine's mousy twin sister Elena begins to say, only to be cut off by Rebekah who says, "No, he's right, I hate her," to which Elena simply shrugs and throws another one of her pink rabbit erasers at Damon's head.

"But I'd like to think that I've matured to a point where I can admit that she is one of the most wonderful people I know," Rebekah continues. "I mean, what's not to like, Damon? She's as nauseatingly nice as you, she would punch a dragon in the eye to save her friends - scratch that, she has punched a dragon in the eye to save her friends, you bitched at her for it because you were so terrified that you might actually lose her, although you threw a fit when she did the same after you so stupidly decided to get your spine broken courtesy of the giant you idiotically tried to stop from hurting Phoenix, a fucking superhero with actual powers who is literally the most badass person I know."

"Oh, and get this," Katherine decides to add on, " _she's hot_."

"She's also kind, compassionate, considerate," Nora points out.

"Hardworking," Rebekah's twin brother Kol calls out, his tone muffled as he was half asleep already, face buried in Josh's shoulder.

"Gets shit done," Sarah reminds her cousin.

"Always ready and willing to help," Caroline Forbes and Matt Donovan pipe up in unison from somewhere in the room.

"The creepiness of those two being in sync aside, Bonnie values her family more than anything," Davina Claire decides to add in her two cents, nudging Damon's head with the eraser side of her pencil.

"And most importantly," Emily decides to finish, "she's the greatest friend that you could ever ask for."

"See, there's your problem," Damon tells them.

"What?" says Rebekah, confused as to why Damon hadn't called Bonnie with a fake emergency, knowing that she'd be here in heartbeat, so that he could finally ask her out.

"Bonnie is a great friend, but that's all she is. I mean, come on, so many guys, and girls, have shown an interest in her, but she's turned them all down after leading them on, hoping to remain friends regardless. She's dated, yeah, but she's never seriously committed to anyone before. It's this whole process with her and I just can't - you know what, never mind, can we just drop the subject? Professor Saltzman should be here in a couple minutes."

And with that, Damon opens up his textbook, pretending to study so that his friends would leave him alone, wondering as to when what was supposed to be more or less his safe haven became so, so very suffocating.

Choruses of "he is hopeless," "god what a mess," and "maybe we should find someone who actually understands human emotions for Bonnie," could be heard throughout the classroom, but unbeknownst to anyone, the subject of the conversation herself stood frozen at the entrance of the classroom.

"Bon?" Jeremy's voice rings out softly as lightly shakes her out of her stupor.

"Sorry, I don't know what happened to me there for a second," Bonnie tries to play her reaction off casually, but Jeremy was having none of it.

"What Damon said got to you, didn't it?" Jeremy asks sadly, raising an eyebrow.

"Why would Damon saying that I'm not his type bother me? I mean, come on, we're barely even friends as is."

"Lies, all lies. And besides, that's not what I was talking about anyway."

Bonnie bites lower lip, whimpering, "Is that really what everyone thinks? That I lead people on?"

"Bonnie, no, don't be ridiculous! You've made your feelings clear from the get-go, and we've all respected that because your friendship means the world to us and we understand that you've already given your heart to someone else."

"I don't have feelings for Damon!" Bonnie is quick to protest.

"I didn't say anything about Damon," Jeremy points out teasingly, wiggling his eyebrows as he smirks at his friend's eyes widening in realization and embarrassment.

"Real cute, Sommers, let's go," Bonnie sighs, grabbing ahold of his hand and heading into the classroom. The second she enters though, her eyes lock with Damon's, as if she was searching for him all along.

Jeremy, noticing his friend's state, whispers into her ear, "Hey, let's head to the back."

Bonnie simply nods as Jeremy leads her to the back of the room, smiling at her friends on the way, barely sparing Damon a second glance, completely missing the glare he sent her way.

It was going to be a long three hours...

* * *

Working as an intern for Giuseppe Salvatore was a dream come true. The man started out as an assistant choreographer, and then got treated like shit for years before finally going solo. He went from choreographing anything and everything to Broadway where he met his beloved wife. But Giuseppe Salvatore was always a man who strived for greatness, he wanted to more, he _knew_ that he could do more - and that's just one of the many reasons why Bonnie admires him. Originally he started a dance school, all he wanted to do was to provide young dancers with the guidance that he did not get the chance to have - with him it always more just getting knocked down and learning things the hard way.

But even building one of the world's most successful dance schools wasn't enough for him as he decided to expand the dance school into a performing arts school, but one where these kids could be provided with all that they would ever need to make it big, so that they could be perfectly groomed in order to take on Broadway or Hollywood, or whatever else they wanted to do. His students work with marketing teams and lawyers, so much so that Mr. Salvatore is even thinking of adding a new division to his school.

Bonnie adored her job! Yes, paperwork could be a bitch, and her first couple days consisted of getting coffee before Dahlia threw a bitch fit and threatened to ruin careers, but she loved the environment, the energy, everything that she has gotten the opportunity to do. While her internship mainly consists of meetings with department heads, helping with lesson plans and being in absolute awe over the marketing wonder that is Dahlia Mikaelson, Bonnie was also given the rare opportunity to learn a few things in order to further her career. Giuseppe has always been impressed with her dance, disappointed that she never considered continuing with it professionally, always drawn more towards her writing and film. But after discovering her natural gift for music as well, under the guise of the internship, Giuseppe gave Bonnie the chance to brush up on her skills with professionals, convincing her that she was helping with the instructors with their classes - Sheila's idea.

But today was a not good idea for Bonnie to be in the office, as noted by Dahlia who immediately took in the scowl that replaced her normally sunny smile, and darkened eyes which were usually bright and shining with hope.

"Sweetie," Dahlia gently nudges her, concerned, "are you okay? If you need to take the day off -"

"I'm fine!" Bonnie snaps, causing her to regret her tone the minute the words slip out when she sees the stern glare Dahlia was sending her way, one that clearly said 'if you weren't so upset, I would've destroyed you.'

"Sorry, that was uncalled for."

"It's okay, happens to the best of us. So what happened to you anyway?"

"Nothing, it was nothing, really!"

Dahlia rolls her eyes. "So I'm guessing that Damon has something to do with this?"

"Whaaaaat? Damon? No, of course not!"

"Not to be crass," Dahlia snorts, "but you _suck_ as a liar."

"Thanks, Dahlia," Bonnie deadpans, before heading back to work.

"Happy to help!" Dahlia cheers gleefully before grabbing a few files and preparing to leave the office when the door bursts open and in walks Giuseppe Salvatore, his youngest son and his bodyguard trailing behind him.

"Good evening ladies, how is the work on the new class production coming along?" he asks, practically skipping into the office.

"Someone's in a good mood," remarks Dahlia, handing him the files containing the progress reports.

"We ran into Professor Jo Parker," Stefan chimes in response, hence the reason for the gleefully terrifying smile that Dahlia sent Giuseppe's way.

He gives his son a pointed look, asking, "Stefan, did you say something?"

"No, father," Stefan groans.

Kai smirks, gently patting him on the shoulder and whispers, "Nice try kid."

Bonnie rolls her eyes fondly at the exchange before turning to Mr. Salvatore and asking, "Was there anything in particular that you needed, Mr. Salvatore?"

"Ah, yes, thank you, Miss Bennett," he sends the younger girl a grateful smile. "I was thinking that you could work with Damon on the next project. While he may have been able to handle this one on his own, it isn't exactly the easiest one-man job -"

"I can do it on my own," they all hear Damon blurt out in defense as he walks into the office, his uncle Zach trailing behind him obviously.

"In fact," he adds, "I've already gotten a head start on it."

"But you haven't even finished the current one, son," Giuseppe points out, crossing his arms over his chest. "What have I told you about starting something new when you already have something going on?"

"That it's always better to do one thing well than two things horribly. Finish what you start, before you start again," Damon grumbles. "But honestly, father, this project is basically done, I have a plan for the next one - I really don't think that I need anyone's help."

"Well, I've heard such great things about how the two of you make such a wonderful team, I thought that it would be good for the both of you and for the project if you worked together. I mean, you are friends after all."

"We're acquaintances at best," Bonnie informs her boss with a bright smile on her face, prompting him to look back and forth between his student and his son, both concern and confusion evident on his face. "Damon may not need my help, but I would be happy to work with him regardless. Anything else I can do for you?"

"Well, Enzo actually needed a second opinion on a new song that he wrote -"

"I'll be right there!" Bonnie exclaims, eyes lighting up, rushing to grab her notebook before she practically sprints out the door.

Once she's out of earshot, Giuseppe sighs. "That girl is letting such a natural talent and genuine love of hers slip right through her fingers."

"Save it for your next therapy session with Miss Sheila," drawls his younger brother Zach, Damon's bodyguard.

"She's not even a therapist. Miss Sheila runs a very successful business, I'll have you know."

"Sorry, I meant tea time. Let's go!" And with that, Zach drags his brother out of the office, but not before smacking his nephew upside the head, adding, "Nice going, idiot," making Stefan and Kai snicker.

"What'd you do anyway?" Stefan asks his brother once their uncle and father have left.

"I don't care what the fuck he did, he better fix it soon. And by that, I mean in under twenty-four hours, got it?" Dahlia snarls at the young man she practically raised, glaring at him.

Dahlia's reaction just makes Stefan laugh even harder. "Damn bro, you royally fucked up."

"Shut up Stefan," Damon grumbles, as Dahlia scoffs and Kai looks like he was about to punch him in the face.

"I swear to god Damon, if you hurt her, I will kill you before Dahlia or Sarah or anyone else can get the chance to," Kai practically growls at his friends. Damon's a pretty cool guy for the most part, and they've become good friends over the past couple years, but Damon's inability to understand and control his emotions was starting to become a constant problem in all their lives, Bonnie's in particular.

"Why does everyone always like to assume that it's always my fault?" demands Damon.

"Because if it was Bonnie's fault she wouldn't be pissed off at you, she'd just be sad, you dipshit," Kai reminds him.

"And let's be real, it's usually your fault and -" Stefan makes a point to oh so helpfully add.

Damon cuts him off, "Alright, you know what, I have work to do, unlike _some people_ , so I'm going to leave, you enjoy hating me."

Just as he's about to leave, Stefan calls out after him, "Don't worry big brother, we will!" Damon simply rolls his eyes, slamming the door behind him.

Fisk flies out of his pocket, glaring at his miraculous holder.

Damon sighs. "You going to yell at me too?"

"No," Fisk says, "I'm going to remind you that people get demonized when they have negativity filling their hearts, and that friend of yours has got oodles of it building up inside of her, thanks to you."

"Bonnie won't get demonized, Fisk, she's the kindest, most positive person I know," Damon assures his kwami.

"Oh yeah? What if I told you that she heard what you said in the classroom about her, hm?"

"Fuck!" Damon groans, telling Fisk to get back inside his pocket as he rushes to find Bonnie.

If he wasn't so busy looking for Bonnie, he would've heard Fisk mutter to himself, "Don't reveal their identities to one another she said, they'll find out eventually she said - bull-fucking-shit, I told that damn firebird that our masters are complete morons but _no_! Seriously, screw you, Ina!"

* * *

It had become a tradition of sorts for Shark to go check up on Bonnie every now and then at odd hours of the night, ever since that first time when she became a target for one of his and Phoenix's villains of the week, Jeremy Gilbert to specific. He always said it was because he was just worried, but sometimes, he just really wanted to talk to Bonnie, as Shark and not Damon since he clearly seemed to be fucking that up.

So that's what he did tonight, scaling the walls of Bonnie's house, heading up to her room, knowing that her window would be open as it always is, but rather than going inside, he takes a seat on the window sill, not wanting to bother her as she was working.

He listened to her sing softly, almost murmuring the words, walking around her room as she made notes in what Shark had come to know as her writing journal for songs, poems, short stories, scripts, you name it! As usual though, Bonnie was completely and utterly unaware of her surroundings, so her foot ends up hitting the leg of her desk.

She drops her journal and pen, immediately crying out, "Shit, fuck, why me?!"

Shark's reaction is instant - he practically flies towards Bonnie, making her sit down on her bed and propping her foot upon his knee in order to take a closer, all before Bonnie could even process Shark being in her room.

"God, you would stub the same toe on the same object over and over again," he grunts. "How your toe hasn't given up on you, I'll never know."

"You're talking to the same girl who threw up on her date," Bonnie reminds him.

"Oh yeah, you do not handle alcohol well."

"No shit, Sherlock. So what's up, what are you doing here?"

"What, a superhero can't just visit his favorite civilian?"

"Phoenix doesn't visit Damon Salvatore as often as you visit me."

"And here I thought Sarah Salvatore was her favorite. Hell, I would've guessed Rebekah Mikaelson or Katherine Pierce before I guessed Damon Salvatore."

"Well, she's always had a bit of a soft spot in her heart for Damon."

Noting the far-off look on Bonnie's face, hiding his own smile, Shark asks, "And I take it so have you?"

"Yeah," Bonnie admits softly, then blurting out, "I mean, no, don't be ridiculous!" once she realizes what she was saying and whom she was saying it to - Shark is type to tease her endlessly about something like this, and she already has everyone else in her life set out to do the same, so she'd rather not add Shark, the worst of the worst, to the list as well.

Shark chuckles, his mood lightening already. "Your indecisiveness is truly adorable, little bird."

Moving her foot off of Shark's knee, Bonnie leans down closer as Shark looks up at her in surprise.

"Okay, I've always been curious as to why you call me little bird, yet your partner, Phoenix, an actual fucking _firebird_ , gets to be called Judgy?"

Shark furrows his eyebrows in curiosity, tilting his chin up. "How do you know what I call her?"

 _Fuck_ , thinks Bonnie, almost hearing the groan Ina let out from her little bed on Bonnie's desk. Bonnie merely blinks back Shark in response before finally finding her words in order to inform him, "Um... Sarah is very thorough... and clearly, you're not the only superhero that visits me since I happen to know more about Phoenix than you do."

"There's something fishy about what you just said."

"Or maybe it's just you," Bonnie bites back, eyes widening once she realizes what she just said. "Did I just make a pun?"

"That was hardly a pun."

"It was close enough!"

"I don't think that you know how puns work."

"I blame you and your terrible influence."

"What? I am a great influence!"

"Mhmm, okay, whatever you say."

"I mean, come on, I get along _swimmingly_ with parents and children alike - even Sheriff Forbes and Mayor Mikaelson adore me."

"You just can't help yourself, can you?"

"Me without puns is like a _fish_ without water."

"I hate you so much," Bonnie groans, although she was shaking with laughter, putting a sad smile on Shark's face.

Bonnie turns to him as he takes a seat beside her on her bed, immediately blurting out, "You know I don't hate you, right?" thinking that she'd done something wrong.

Shark looks at her incredulously. "Of course not you dork! It's just that… no one really ever appreciates my puns."

Bonnie immediately feels guilty at Shark's words. "And by no one you clearly mean Phoenix."

"I'm just trying to lighten the mood since she's always so serious, like the weight of the world is on her shoulder, while in reality, it should fall on both our shoulders."

Bonnie felt like shit for, albeit unintentionally, making Damon feel this way. "You do realize that Phoenix thinks the world of you, right? You're her other half, she'd be nothing without you! You're her partner, _not_ her sidekick, contrary to popular belief."

"I know, I know!" Shark assures her, frustrated, causing Bonnie to look at him curiously, confused. "I know that deep down that Phoenix appreciates everything I do, or _try_ to do to help, but at the end of the day, we all know that everything ends up falling on her. She's the stronger one, she's the braver one, she's the smarter one - that's why out of the two of us, I'm always the screw up that sometimes falls under the control of whoever has been demonized, and we both know, heck, everyone knows that my falling under control means nothing. But if the same thing were to somehow someway shockingly happen to Phoenix, we'd all be doomed, and I wouldn't be able to do anything to help. Our partnership can sometimes feel like Phoenix just going out of her way to clean up my messes."

"Phoenix has made her own share of mistakes as well, Shark," Bonnie reminds him, wanting to let him know that he's not the only one with insecurities in this partnership, "or are you forgetting that she was once the reason for both Rebekah Mikaelson and Katherine Pierce being demonized because she behaved recklessly, and irresponsibly, and like an all-around immature brat?" Taking Shark's hands into her own, Bonnie continues, "Shark, you can't just keep how you feel from Phoenix. She wants to hear about your problems, she wants to _help you_ , so for the love of Gram's sugar cookies, would it kill you to just talk to her? Because I think that Phoenix would prefer that her partner talk to _her_ about his problems rather than a civilian, and as much as I love having you around here, you and Phoenix are responsible for this entire town, and if there is any sort of miscommunication between the two of you, then we will all be in deep shit."

"I know, you're right, it's just so hard to talk to Phoenix sometimes -"

"WHAT?!" Bonnie cuts him off, hollering at the top of her lungs, not believing what she was hearing. "You're fine with me - I mean, you're such an articulate individual?"

"What?"

"Ignore me, please, and just continue with what you were about to say before I oh so rudely interrupted you," Bonnie grumbles, digging her face into her hands, waiting for Ina barrel out of her hiding place in fury.

"Okay?" Shark has learned by now that sometimes it's honestly just best to do as Bonnie says and ignore her crazy rambling to relieve her of any further embarrassment. "Uh, well, Phoenix has this air of confidence which makes it super intimidating to talk to her about anything because I don't want to have to run to her with my problems, I want her to see me as her equal and not someone that she has to feel like she's responsible for. You, on the other hand, have this comforting touch which makes it so easy to talk to you about anything and everything."

"But Phoenix _wants_ to hear about your problems, she _wants_ to help you, she's not going to think any less of you if you go to her with your problems!" Bonnie tries not get frustrated, unwilling to believe that Shark, her partner, doesn't feel comfortable talking to her, but he'll talk to her civilian counterpart - it's ridiculous, they're the same fucking person!

"She goes to Damon with hers!" Shark protests.

"How do you even know that?"

"I talk to Sarah too!"

"Well, it's like with me and you. You say you only show up here because you're worried about me, but really, it's just an excuse for you to come annoy me to pieces and steal my Gram's sugar cookies. Phoenix is probably the same way with Damon - says she's worried, but really just wants an excuse to talk to him because she's in lo-"

When Bonnie completely freezes, refusing to continue, Shark asks, "Are you going to finish that sentence or have you suddenly been demonized, on my watch no less, and I now need to call Phoenix?"

"Nope, I'm good!" Bonnie squeaks, her voice raising an octave or two... hundred. Clearing her throat, she continues, "As I was saying, maybe Phoenix feels the same way that you do? Maybe, she doesn't want to bother you with her problems because she never got over messing up that very first mission you guys had, all those years ago?"

"The one with Matt Donovan? She's still beating herself up over that?"

"Yeah, and maybe that's why Damon was the better option for her. I don't know why the hell he goes to her with all his problems though, he has Tyler and Rebekah and Katherine, and Sarah, and Stefan, and -"

"You?"

"Exactly!" Bonnie giddy smile is gone the moment that it had appeared once she sees that damn Cheshire cat grin on Shark's. She throws one of her million handmade pillows at him. "You set me up you jerk!"

"You fell head first into that one, admit it!"

"Fine!"

"So, are you into Damon by any chance?" Shark asks nervously.

 _Smooth, kid_ , he hears Fisk say in his head, _real smooth_.

"No, I hate him," Bonnie growls, not noticing the deflated, heartbroken expression on Shark's face - mask or not, it was obvious the poor boy just got his heart broken.

"Damon Salvatore is infuriating, he drives me insane sometimes, and the worst part is that it's only because he sucks at emotions. The man can do musical theory in his sleep, he can play piano blindfolded, but ask him how he's feeling and it's like he's a newborn - it's all grunts and mumbles, words are suddenly just such a foreign concept to him. Damon's one of the best people that I know - he's kind, he's genuine, he's polite, he's respectful and he cares about his loved ones more than anything and that's important to me, he's really important to me as a friend, a really good friend who I care about except..."

"Except what?" Shark demands, toning down his excitement once he notices the expression on Bonnie's face.

"Except that Damon has been acting like a complete asshole to some of our friends recently -"

"You mean the ones that have kidnapped you?"

"While demonized, yes! It's no excuse to be talking about them the way that he does sometimes."

"Huh, well I seem to recall word of you being not that nice to Katherine Pierce for the longest time."

 _Shit_ , Bonnie thinks.

She decides to play it cool. "What are you talking about? I was an absolute delight!"

"Bonnie, you teamed up with Rebekah Mikaelson to make her miserable!"

"Phoenix might as well have demonized her!" Bonnie blurts out without thinking, practically hearing Ina roll her eyes.

"Bonnie!"

"Okay, fine, I admit - I was horrible! But I apologized for my actions, as did Rebekah, and now we go out for coffee and they sleep over like all the time. Damon has been a jerk for over a year, and it's only whenever I so much as mention Jeremy or Kai or Enzo. He never behaves that way with Tyler or Kol!"

Without thinking, Shark says, "Because they're both taken, and also, Tyler's like a brother to you and Kol is gay."

"So?"

"So they're not competition, Bonnie!" Shark decides to go with the flow of his word vomit. "Damon doesn't like the idea of you being involved with Jeremy or Kai or Enzo because at some point you have shown interest in them and they are all clearly not over you, despite what you may want to believe, and, oh yeah, Damon's a jealous moron, okay?!"

Bonnie stares at him disbelief, trying to process what had just been said, while Shark stares at Bonnie in shock, hoping that this was all just one really bad dream, or simply someone's idea of a cruel joke because he had just told his best-friend to her face that he was an idiot and hopelessly in love with her.

"Shark," Bonnie begins, a smile slowly forming on her face, "are you trying to tell me that Damon fucking Salvatore might be into me?"

"No!"

"Then why - and how -" Bonnie tries to form her words, but starts to glare as Shark's ring starts to beep, indicating that he was about to de-transform, hence why had gotten up and started inching towards her window.

"Shark, don't you dare!" Bonnie warns as he has one leg out the window.

"I swear to god Shark!" And there goes the other leg.

Bonnie runs to the window just as Shark jumps down.

"I will jump out after you!" Bonnie yells after him, thinking that he'd stop, but he just kept running. "Shark!"

Bonnie groans in frustration, closing her window and plopping down on her bed. Ina flies out of her own little bed and hovers over Bonnie.

"You heard that too right?" Bonnie asks her, giddy with excitement. "It wasn't just me? I'm not going crazy?"

Ina smiles softly at the young girl. "Sweetie, maybe you should just get some sleep for now, alright?"

"Yeah, you're probably right," Bonnie admits when she sees the time on the clock on her wall. "Good night Ina!"

"Good night Bonnie," Ina whispers softly, heading back to her bed. Once she's sure Bonnie can't hear her, she says to herself, "Fisk is going to drive me insane by shoving it in my face that he was right and I was wrong for once, isn't he? Yeah, me and my stupid morals."

Damn it sucks to be the kwami of the most oblivious girl in Mystic Falls.

And it sucks even more to be the kwami of her emotionally-challenged soulmate.

* * *

Bonnie couldn't stop thinking about what Shark had said to her all week. It made her want to take a page out of his book and go see Damon as Phoenix, then maybe he'd actually talk to her.

But she didn't. She wanted Damon to talk to her as Bonnie, not Phoenix. She wanted him to talk to his friend rather than the town superhero who he practically worships.

Easier said than done. Despite having a class together and being assigned by Giuseppe to work on the same project, they hadn't seen each other all week. Bonnie couldn't help but think that Damon was avoiding her like she was the fucking plague.

It was why she couldn't pay attention during the staff meeting and Giuseppe had to actually call on her to bring her back to Earth.

"Miss Bennett, are you alright?" he asks, concerned as Bonnie had been behaving strangely all week. Everyone else stares at her as well, the exact same thoughts as Giuseppe running through their minds.

Bonnie, embarrassed, bites her lower lip, something she only does when she's nervous, sputtering, "Yes, sorry, I am absolutely fine, couldn't be better, tomorrow's production is going to be fabulous, please continue!"

She sees Ina peek out from the pocket of her blazer, glancing up at her sympathetically.

Once the meeting was finally over and Bonnie had recovered from her utter humiliation - Ina assured her that she was making mountains out of molehills as she usually does - she, Dahlia, Damon, and Giuseppe were the only ones left in the room.

Damon turns to his father, trying not to get upset as Bonnie and Dahlia exchange nervous glances.

"Father, why didn't tell me that you were going to miss tomorrow's production?"

"Well, the meeting in LA just came up, and Niklaus Mikaelson is not an easy man to get a meetinh with."

"Mr. Salvatore," Dahlia decides to cut in, "I can handle this meeting. You need to be there for tomorrow's production, _it's important_." Dahlia tilts her head slightly in Damon's direction for a good measure to prove her point.

"Nonsense! You enjoy the production, Dahlia, I'll handle the meeting. And besides, Damon, I trust you completely. I know that the production will be perfect, my presence is not essential to its success."

Damon sighs, a sad smile adorning his face as he looks at his father. "Of course, you're absolutely right, father. I'll see you at home then. Goodbye Dahlia, Bonnie. I will see you both tomorrow."

It takes everything in Damon to not slam the door behind him as he leaves.

Dahlia glares at her boss with every intention to chew him out, but noticing the murderous expression on Bonnie's face, she chooses to let the younger girl handle this one. And unlike Damon, Dahlia actually does slam the door behind her.

Noticing that Bonnie hadn't left yet, Giuseppe asks, "Was there something that I could help you with, Miss Bennett?"

"Yes, actually," says Bonnie, trying to remain calm and rational about the matter. "Mr. Salvatore, you should know that I admire and respect you a lot, and I appreciate everything that you have done for me, every opportunity that you have given to me, and everything that you have ever taught me. So please don't take this the wrong way," Bonnie couldn't believe that she was really doing this, "but what is your problem?"

"Excuse me?" Giuseppe demands, shoulders tightening up, arms folded across his chest as he tried to appear intimidating.

"Like I said, I mean no disrespect, and you may believe that this is none of my business or that I'm stepping out of line, but I don't, because Damon is my best-friend and I love him, we all do, but he loves you and you seem to be the one person who hurts him the most."

Bonnie remembers Damon's sad smile whenever his father couldn't make it to a recital or something as simple as parent-teacher interviews, but being conditioned to grin and bear it rather than breaking down.

"All your son has ever wanted is for you to show that you actually love him. He doesn't want your money, and he doesn't even want a stupid pat on the back. He wants your love and affection and maybe, just maybe, the tiniest bit of your time. Damon hasn't been working his ass off on this production because he wants to impress you, he did it because he thought that maybe you'd finally get over yourself and show that you love your son because I know that you do!"

Bonnie remembers Damon working himself sick on occasion, day and night, night and day, struggling to hold it together every time something would go wrong. But every time something seemed to go right, every time things turned out to be perfect, Damon would say, "My dad is going to love this!"

"You have been so cold towards him and Stefan ever since Mrs. Salvatore died, but it's been over ten years - please don't interrupt me before I finish - and the bottom line is, your wife is gone, okay, it sucks, and I know because my parents have been gone for a really, really long time, but eventually I stopped noticing because I have my Grams, my aunt Tessa and my cousins. You have two young sons who love you dearly and you have missed some of the most prominent aspects of their life. Damon's going to be twenty soon, Stefan's about to learn how to drive - you've missed seeing your sons grow up. It should've been you teaching Damon to drive, not his uncle Zach. It should've been you giving Stefan the sex talk, not Dahlia, his father's _assistant_.

And what's even worse for Damon is that there are times when you do make time for Stefan, which is great, but you have another son who deserves and craves your love and affection as well. Maybe it's because Stefan lost his mom so young and Damon got almost ten years of her time so you feel like you should be compensating for that but all you're doing is hurting one son in favor of the other. And you want to hear the most wonderful part about all this? It's that Damon could never even fathom blaming Stefan or being jealous of him because he is a good big brother and Stefan's happiness means the world to him because you and I both know that Damon is there to pick up the pieces every single time you disappoint Stefan, but no one's ever there to do the same for him."

Bonnie remembers Damon showing up to school, practically falling apart, not because he stayed up late partying or pulling a last minute all-nighter, but because he stayed up to help his little brother finish his homework and rehearse for the school play and figure out how to talk to the girl he likes before getting his own things done at one in the frigging' morning. She remembers Damon spending his lunch making an utterly embarrassing 'Go Stefan!' poster for Stefan's first football game, because he knew that their father would miss as he always does, and when he did, it was Damon holding up his sign tall and proud, yelling at the top of his lungs, and his little brother's smile made it all worth it.

"Damon is a good person, Mr. Salvatore. He is so very wonderful in so many ways, and you couldn't ask for a better son because despite everything he would do anything for you. He does everything that you ask of him and more and all that he wants is for you to tell him that you love him. Why is it so hard for you to tell your son that you love him?!" Bonnie screams that last part, her voice so loud and shrill that it actually causes the mighty Giuseppe Salvatore to flinch and let a tear trickle down his face.

Noting her mentor's reaction, Bonnie sighs, running her fingers through her hair - which was a mess at this point, along with her makeup thanks to the tears streaming down her own face. She quietly grabs her things and heads out the door.

A beat later, she pops her head back in to say, "I completely understand if you would want to fire me after all that, but you should know that I will not be begging for my job back because I don't regret what I did, or rather what I said... Have a nice evening!"

And with that, Bonnie rushed out of the building, truly happy that she stuck for Damon, not giving a single thought to her job or the fact that she just chewed out her mentor.

* * *

The production took place the next night, and it had been beautiful, everyone had done an amazing job, and Damon simply helped to bring it all together.

And Bonnie couldn't be more in love.

Except she still wasn't able to talk to Damon with people going up to speak with him the minute he stepped into the after-party, and Bonnie was happy for him, really, he deserved it all.

But was it so wrong of her to want a split second to tell him that she loved him and then run like the wind?

A familiar voice brings Bonnie out of her thoughts.

"Please stop being such a wallflower and come dance with me already!"

Bonnie rolls her eyes at her ridiculous co-worker Marcel.

"Only if you promise to stop bringing me herbal fucking tea."

"Yeah, no way in hell!" exclaims Marcel, pulling her in for a dance.

Meanwhile, Damon was finally free to talk to Bonnie, possibly admit that he was hopelessly head over heels in love with her and then disappear off the face of the Earth like the coward that he is, except he found her dancing with her co-worker Marcel.

He burned holes into the back of the man's head.

"Are you trying to shoot lasers at him or something?" Damon hears one Jeremy Sommers say, turning only to find the brunette standing beside him, drink in hand.

"That, or compel him to leave Bonnie alone and stay at snack table for life."

"You're pathetic -"

"I know."

"- which is why I'm going to help you."

"Aren't you like, in love with Bonnie?" Damon looks genuinely confused, causing Jeremy to think how perfect he and Bonnie are for each other, considering how freaking oblivious they can both be.

"Okay, listen up you hopeless, lovesick fool - Enzo has been taking things really fucking slow with Elena Pierce, Kai has been dating Emily for over a year, you idiot, and I have this weird thing going on with this girl, except I can't tell you because, like I said, it's weird, and she doesn't really want anyone to know, and I really don't want to ruin things -"

"It's Rebekah, isn't it?"

Jeremy looks like a deer caught in headlights. "What? No!"

"She just texted me, genius," Damon drawls.

"Yeah, it's Rebekah - look, bottom line is, you're an idiot and it took a while, but we've all managed to move on from Bonnie, so quit sitting on your ass and make a move before Marcel 'herbal tea' Gerard does!"

Before Damon could respond, he noticed his father watching him from the corner of his eye, his face immediately breaking into a smile.

"There's something I really need to take care of first."

Heading over to where his father is, Damon asks, "What are you doing here? I thought you couldn't make it."

Giuseppe smiles warmly at his son. "Dahlia was more than happy to take over for me. And I realized that there are a lot of things that I'd been doing wrong all these years. You have your friend Bonnie to thank for that."

"I'm pretty sure you were there when she said we were 'acquaintances at best,' but thanks for reminding me."

Giuseppe stares at his son in disbelief, shaking his head.

"Well she sure risked a lot for someone who she claims is a mere acquaintance."

"What do you mean?" Damon furrows his eyebrows in confusion.

"I mean that she yelled at me for being a terrible father and said that she would not be asking for her job back if I fire her because you're her friend and she cares about you," Giuseppe causally informs his son, as if it wouldn't cause his heart, mind and soul to implode.

"You're not going to fire her, are you?!" Damon looked as if his father had just said that Bonnie was about to die, given the concern etched on his face.

"Of course not, she's the best we've got, and if _you_ , my dear boy, weren't hopelessly in love with her, I'd adopt her. You do love her, don't you?"

"Yeah, but I'm an idiot."

"That's true."

"Thanks, dad," Damon deadpans as his father chuckles.

"Tell me, Damon, what does Bonnie Bennett truly mean to you?"

"She means the world to me, father. She has the biggest heart out of anyone that I know, she has the greatest possible capacity for love and she is loyal and determined and brave and so very wonderful and when I see myself five, ten, fifteen and so years in the future, all I see her. She is everything to me - she's my best-friend, and I love her more than life itself."

"Then what are you standing around here for?" his father demands incredulously. "Go get her!"

Damon lets out the most gleeful of chuckles as he hugs father before sprinting off to find Bonnie.

Instead, he finds his cousin Sarah and decides to ask her instead.

"She went outside for some fresh air," Sarah informs him.

He thanks her, rushing outside, Bonnie's gorgeous purple and red dress immediately catching his eye.

"Bonnie!" he calls out, causing her to thankfully turn around as he runs to her, breathless.

"Hi!" Bonnie exclaims happily. "Congratulations on the production, it was amazing! _You_ were amazing."

"Thank you," he practically gushes. "You look beautiful... absolutely, _breathtakingly_ beautiful."

Bonnie feels herself getting nervous under Damon's intense stare as he takes a step closer to her with every word.

"Thanks," she breathes softly. "I saw that your dad actually made it."

"I believe I have you to thank for that."

"I'm just glad that you and your dad are finally making progress."

"You know that he'd be insane to fire you, right? Which was why the very thought is nonexistent to him."

Bonnie laughs out loud, digging her face into Damon's chance, prompting him to take that opportunity to wrap his arms around her. She looks up at him and says, "I wanted to tell you -" but stops when she hears him say the same.

"You first," says Bonnie.

Damon lets out a sigh of relief. "Great! Well first of all, I wanted to apologize for being a jerk, an asshole, absolutely infuriating and just an all-around pain in the ass because I am an idiot, and I'm not the best at understanding or controlling my emotions because I've always just known to keep it all in until I let it out in the worst way possible, and I am so sorry that you have had to suffer because of me."

"That sounded a lot like a highly ambitious fanfiction gone wrong, but continue."

"I was jealous of the idea of you being with someone else, and I know that I had no right to be because I can't expect you to read my mind and know what I'm thinking, I actually have to grow a pair and finally make a move and I am. I love you, Bonnie Bennett, and I don't deserve you, but I want to have the chance to try."

Bonnie smacks him on the chest, _hard_. "Don't you ever say that you deserve me! You love me and I love you, and that's all I've ever wanted."

Damon smirks, reminding Bonnie of Shark for some reason. "I thought that I was merely an acquaintance to you?"

"And I thought that I wasn't your type?" Bonnie bites back, almost as if she was challenging him. "So what, you gonna' finally ask me out or can I just ask you out because you are taking way to long and I know a place that has the best deep fried mac n cheese balls and you will love -"

Bonnie's rambling is finally cut off by Damon crashing his lips onto hers, blocking out the sounds of their friends and family cheering at the top of their lungs - god, were they watching?

Well, it doesn't matter, nothing did, because at that point, Damon and Bonnie had finally come together, like two halves of a whole.

Like soulmates.

Whether it was as Bonnie and Damon or Phoenix and Shark, one thing was sure - Bonnie and Damon were forever.

* * *

 **A/N: By the way, in case you couldn't tell, this is not edited, but it will be soon because I just wanted to get it out, and worry about the editing process later because otherwise, it would've taken me months to get this out!**


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